Jul. 27, 2013

New homes being constructed by Drees Homes along Monarchos Ridge at Triple Crown in Richwood. / The Enquirer/Gary Landers

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Housing Permits

Here are the new single-home permits for the first six months of this year and for the same time in 2012, as well as annual totals for each of the last six years for Boone, Campbell, and Kenton Counties:

First half

Full year

County

2013

2012

% change

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

Boone

214

166

+29%

324

330

383

392

431

760

Campbell

48

50

–4%

99

103

98

115

162

197

Kenton

110

126

–13%

228

174

225

256

319

368

Total

372

342

+9%

651

607

706

763

912

1,325

Source: Home Builders Association of Northern Kentucky

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New single-home permits climbed 29 percent in Boone County through the first half of 2013 compared with the same period last year, while new housing starts dropped 13 percent in adjacent Kenton County.

Northern Kentucky building officials say there are several reasons for the disparity, but they point to big differences in taxes and permitting costs between the two counties – as much as $1,000 per house – as a major factor.

“It all adds up,” said Brian Miller, executive vice president for the Home Builders Association of Northern Kentucky. “For every $1,000 you add to a house, you take 1,600 potential households out of being able to afford a particular house in this market.”

Campbell County new home permits also fell 4 percent in the first year, according to statistics supplied by the association.

Overall, new single-home permits in all three counties rebounded a bit last year compared with 2011, climbing 7 percent after dropping in 2011. But that was after several years of big declines; they fell 54 percent between 2007 and 2011.

“It really is a tale of two counties, and whoever figures out how to benefit from this recovery wins,” Miller said. “We still see challenges in acquisition, construction and development lending as well as an overall labor shortage in the construction industry.”

Miller said that in a recent comparison, the permits for a 2,900-square-foot home in Boone County with a finished basement cost about $560. A similar home in Kenton County with an unfinished basement saw its permits cost $1,314. Miller also pointed out that property taxes are 25 percent higher or more for homeowners in Kenton County compared with Boone County.

“I really wasn’t aware how much lower our fees were ... and I know how hard the builders fight over the cost of a single joist, so I can see that making a difference,” said Jerald Noran, the chief building official for Boone County, who oversees the county’s building permitting and inspections.

Noran said the last time the county raised its rates was in 2004, adding that the county considered hiking them again in 2008. But then the recession hit, and Nolan said he needs to see more of an upward trend before renewing that effort, which would take approval by the Boone County Fiscal Court.

“Lately, it’s been hit or miss. ... We have a good month and then things are down again,” Nolan said. “Until we see a sustained recovery over a full year, we won’t enter into a conversation about raising our rates.”

Building challenges in Boone include lack of available land

Officials with the Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission, which oversees inspections and permitting for most communities in Kenton County as well as the unincorporated parts of the county, declined to comment on the price differences, saying they have not done their own comparisons.

But NKAPC chief building official Brian Sims said there as many as 50 new permit applications in the pipeline for Kenton County, which could bring that area’s numbers up during the second half of the year.

“I will also say that one of the challenges for builders here is that we are more built out in Kenton County as compared with Boone County, and there is just not as much available land,” Sims said.

One of the area’s largest home builders agrees that available land is a major factor.

“There are more home sites in Boone County right now,” said Steve Whaley, corporate marketing manager for Erlanger-based Fischer Homes, the third-largest builder in the three counties based on overall permits. “Kenton County still has great neighborhoods and is still a desirable place to live, but it is true that there are not as many available sites.”

Miller says Campbell County has different issues, including a more hilly topography as well as less available infrastructure such as sewer and water.

And with Sanitation District No. 1 (the agency that oversees the area’s sewer system) considering possible budget cuts, Miller said that probably won’t change soon.

He also says the region’s home-building industry has changed dramatically in the wake of the recession, with smaller builders being pushed out of the market for a variety of reasons, including inability to get access to loans from smaller banks as well as overall consolidation.

“The banks, especially these community banks, are asking for bigger shares in terms of collateral and a lot of these guys just don’t have it right now,” Miller said. ■

I dig deep to find the story behind the story for my beloved adopted home of Northern Kentucky and all of Greater Cincinnati. Email: %20jpilcher@nky.com. I dig deep to find the story behind the story for my beloved adopted home of Northern Kentucky and all of Greater Cincinnati. Email: %20jpilcher@nky.com.